Lindsay Lohan gets jail term

Judge sentences actress to 90 days for violating probation

by Anthony McCartney - Jul. 7, 2010 12:00 AMAssociated Press

BEVERLY HILLS - A judge sentenced Lindsay Lohan on Tuesday to 90 days in jail and an inpatient-rehabilitation program after finding the actress had violated her probation in a 2007 drug case by failing to attend alcohol-education classes.

The actress burst into tears after the ruling.

Superior Court Judge Marsha Revel issued the sentence after listening to testimony from employees of an alcohol-treatment program that Lohan had been ordered to attend.

Lohan missed seven classes since December, which led to the judge's harsh rebuke moments after the "Mean Girls" star offered a tearful apology.

"I did do everything I was told to do and did the best I could to balance jobs and showing up," Lohan told the judge. "It wasn't vacation, it wasn't some sort of a joke."

Revel said she found Lohan's apology insincere, comparing it to "somebody who cheats and thinks it isn't cheating if she doesn't get caught."

Lohan was not immediately taken into custody and will be permitted to surrender on July 20. She will have to wear an alcohol monitor until then.

A Los Angeles County district attorney spokeswoman said it was not uncommon for judges to let defendants surrender at a later date so they can get their affairs in order.

The sentence tripled the monthlong jail sentence prosecutors had sought for Lohan.

It was unclear how much time Lohan will actually spend in jail. Los Angeles Sheriff's Department spokesman Steve Whitmore said female inmates convicted of non- violent misdemeanors serve about a fourth of their sentence, but that can be further reduced by state credits.

Whitmore said Lohan might be released on house arrest, but it would depend on Revel's order.

Lohan could be returning to the Lynwood jail where she spent 84 minutes in 2007, after pleading guilty to two misdemeanor counts of being under the influence of cocaine, and no contest to two counts of driving with a blood-alcohol level above 0.08 percent and one count of reckless driving. She had been sentenced to four days behind bars.

The same jail housed Paris Hilton in 2007, after she was convicted of driving on a suspended license while on probation in an alcohol-related reckless-driving case.

Lohan's 2007 plea came after a pair of high-profile arrests earlier that year. Lohan was sentenced to three years' probation but had to ask for a yearlong extension in October after she failed to complete her alcohol-education courses on time.